By: Suzanne Beck, Dayton Counsel, Pro Bono Partnership of Ohio and Claire Luby-Colton, Development Manager, Pro Bono Partnership of Ohio
Most nonprofit annual reports celebrate successful programs, inspiring stories and community impact. Rarely do they highlight the legal work that helped make those achievements possible.
At Pro Bono Partnership of Ohio, we know that strong legal infrastructure is often the foundation for the successes featured in annual reports. Whether a nonprofit is protecting its intellectual property, navigating a real estate transaction, updating its employee handbook or strengthening governance practices, nonprofits’ efforts on these types of legal projects build the capacity they need to fulfill their missions.
Nonprofits are navigating an increasingly complex environment today. Workforce challenges, regulatory requirements and funding uncertainty are demanding more time and resources from already stretched organizations. At the same time, many nonprofits are responding to a heightened need for services. As a result, nonprofit leaders and boards are exploring new strategies to sustain and strengthen their impact.
One of the most notable trends PBPO has seen is the growing number of nonprofit mergers, strategic partnerships and even dissolutions. In the past year alone, PBPO has helped complete more of these transactions than in its previous 11-year history combined — a reflection of both the pressures nonprofits face and their commitment to serving their communities effectively.
While these transitions can involve difficult conversations and complex legal considerations, they should not be viewed as signs of failure. Rather, they are thoughtful, mission-driven decisions that can preserve or sometimes expand community impact. Even a dissolution can include a deliberate decision to help empower other organizations to more effectively serve clients.
When nonprofits merge, they can share administrative resources and reduce overhead, often expanding capacity for programs and services. Strategic partnerships can unlock opportunities to share expertise, strengthen operations and achieve outcomes that would otherwise be out of reach. When nonprofits dissolve, assets can be transferred to organizations advancing similar missions, ensuring that resources continue benefiting the community.
PBPO often represents one or more nonprofits involved in a merger transaction, providing separate legal counsel to each party through its team of staff attorneys and attorney volunteers. PBPO guides nonprofit leaders through critical decisions related to structure, risk, governance and agreements, helping ensure the process is strategic, compliant and mission focused.
As these transitions become more common across the nonprofit sector, PBPO is proud to help organizations navigate them with confidence. Mergers, dissolutions and partnerships are not endings — they are often opportunities to strengthen services, preserve resources and maximize community impact. PBPO applauds the nonprofit leaders and board members making these thoughtful decisions to help build a stronger, more sustainable nonprofit sector — and stands ready to help!
Pro Bono Partnership of Ohio, a 501(c)(3), provides direct legal services and education, at no cost to Southwest Ohio nonprofits. In 2025, PBPO empowered 1,273 nonprofit leaders and attorney volunteers through its educational offerings and completed 562 free legal projects for 208 nonprofits.
To learn more about nonprofit mergers, dissolutions or strategic partnerships, please contact PBPO at info@pbpohio.org.